Mvix Launches the HDMI Equipped MV780 HD Media Player
By Filip Brajovic |
January 22nd, 2008
Comments (4)
Practical computer to TV media devices are coming off the drawing board faster than ever. The latest innovation, the Mvix MV780, ups the game. Sporting the option of using a SATA or ATA 3.5-inch hard drive, the MV780 can store and sync all kinds of media, and spit it back in full HD.
Unlike its predecessor, the MV760, the MV780 offers a native HDMI output, supporting full 1080i HD. The MV760 was limited to DVI with an optional HDMI adapter. With a native HDMI output, the MV780 connects smoothly to an HDTV at full quality.
For the not-so tech savvy, the MV780 makes taking media to the living room as easy as taking an Excel spreadsheet home from work on a jump drive. Whether connected to a Mac, Linux or Windows machine, the MV780 behaves itself just like external hard drive. Expect Geico caveman style promotion; sharing photos, music and video content is as simple as dragging and dropping files onto the drive. Mvix indicates support of up to 750 gigabytes of storage with the addition of a hard drive, put into perspective as being 400 hours of video, 150,000 songs and 2 million pictures. Expect Amazon.com to release Mvix bundles that include a hard drive as they’ve done in the past with the MV780’s predecessors.
An easy to use nature is emphasized with the rear connectors, which unlike some media devices won’t send a cable guy or aspiring media amateur running down to Radio Shack for advice. For anyone who’s connected home theater hardware before, the RCA and HDMI jacks should provide a familiar atmosphere alongside the computer oriented USB and ethernet connections. Also, the coaxial and digital audio output allows the discerning audiophile to hear every subtle inflection in a Terminator movie explosion.
Once all the TV connections are set up, connecting the MV780 to a computer is as simple as entering the SSID of the home network router or plugging an ethernet cable into it. The MV780 is equipped with super fast 802.11n, allowing speedy media transfers and syncs. Once networked, the only difficult task left is explaining to ignorant members of the household how to watch movies and listen to music without using a DVD player and optical media. Syncing functions allow the MV780 to sync with any computer in the house, along with popular filesharing programs (i.e. eMule, KaZaa, BitTorrent) allowing all the media computers in a household to work together seamlessly as one media mainframe. The unit also supports an impressive array of file formats; to find a useless, uncommon file format that the MV780 doesn’t support would probably require hiring Real Networks.
Mvix’s claim is that the MV780 will “replace your DVD player” and be “the revolution of your TV experience” and it stands a fighting chance of doing so. With the Neanderthal simplicity of setup and use of the MV780, using one unit to view movies, photos, videos and listen to music is now so easy there’s almost no excuse not to base your home entertainment around such a device. Save the Blu Ray for discs for some office air-hockey.
January 22nd, 2008 at 9:43 pm
Hmmm … an external harddisk with an integrated wireless device. What’s the big deal?
Can anyone attest how well the unit performs when streaming HD content across the (unreliable) wireless spectrums we use today>
January 23rd, 2008 at 12:06 am
The device and its stored media is intended to be connected directly to your TV. Plus, it streams content over the fastest wireless protocol available to consumers, 802.11n. I think the device will handle HD video with the best of them.
February 27th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
[...] like the Mvix MV780 is getting some competition in the unique space of hard-drive equipped HD media player/PC media [...]
July 13th, 2008 at 3:41 pm
The good thing about these devices is you have the option of viewing from the custom installed Hard Drive or streaming content via wireless. If there are problems via wireless just add the movie/music or picture to the HD at your computer and then reinstall it back into the device to have seamless uninteruptions.